


No Light, No Light

by plutonie



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Multi, There will be romance, and excitement!!, characters will be added as they are introduced, plus danger
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-25
Updated: 2015-12-14
Packaged: 2018-05-03 09:35:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5285732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plutonie/pseuds/plutonie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'Her heart was pounding and fear made her fingertips vibrate, but Marinette felt like she was soaring.</p><p>She was free.'</p><p>Marinette had lived most of her life confined in a tower, working magic for a mystery force, but one fateful day she escapes and finds herself in an exciting world full of danger and wonder. Marinette learns quickly though, that not everything is as it seems and that she will have to fight for her freedom-- and the worlds.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Freedom

Marinette blinked at the bright sun that filtered through her shuttered windows, frowning before forcing herself to rise out of the silky sheets. There was a faint ache behind her eyes, and Marinette groaned. She really shouldn't have slept that long.

  
Getting ready was something she didn't even have to think about at this point. Marinette had been doing the same thing every morning for the past ten years: Get out of bed, brush her teeth, cook breakfast for herself, fix her hair back-- and finally-- she would go back to her room and look at her list of things to do. This list could be short or long, but Marinette didn't have any control over what she had to do. It was up to someone that she didn't know, and would probably never know.

  
Rebelling wasn't possible, Marinette had tried that before. Whoever controlled the list of tasks also controlled the supplies she got. Marinette had tried to live off of what she had, but without being able to gather food herself, she soon starved. After what seemed like forever to the then eight year old, there was food back into the pantry. Marinette had finished her tasks completely after that, even though she wasn't pleased with her life.

  
Marinette shook herself out of her thoughts, and reached up to grab the list. It was short today, and Marinette grinned. She was always pleased to know that she would have free time. Some days the time it would take her to finish would span into the middle of the night.

  
The first task was something she was used too. It was a simple spell, but for what she didn't know. _"Invalesco robur."_ She murmured, moving to sit on her bed.

  
This was the reason she was here. Her magical ability. When she was younger, back when she lived with her parents and went to a small school in her village, Marinette was told that she had an unbelievable amount of power for someone her age. Her parents, a faint feeling of warmth and love, had tried to cover her ability from other people. Marinette never understood until she woke up in an unfamiliar bed, unable to escape from her prison. She had cried for three days before she grew determined to figure out how to escape. That had been ten years ago, and still there was no opportunity to escape.

  
Marinette looked down at the next words to say, already feeling the slow sapping of her power. It was one word, but it left her more drained than before. She really should be waiting longer between spells, but she only had one more to cast and then she would be free to herself.

  
The letters were slightly blurry, but Marinette continued forward. One more spell and then the day was hers. _"Dextera amuletum."_ She said, a bit more forcefully then she had too.

  
The effects were immediate. Marinette listed to the side, her heart hammering in her chest as she was drained of the magic. There was a faint cracking, the sound that her plates would make when hitting together, but Marinette was sure that she imagined it.

  
Her world was spinning, and Marinette couldn't breath. The spell shouldn't be taking this much magic from her, but she had no way to stop it. Was her captor finally tired of her and trying to get rid of her? It had to be, for Marinette was positive that she was dying. The world was black-- or maybe she had shut her eyes-- she couldn't tell as she fought to survive.

  
Time seemed to slow, and Marinette found herself able to breath once more. There was a small red glow in front of her, and Marinette blinked, unable to get the glow to focus.

  
"I chose you for a reason, child. Do not doubt your ability."

  
Marinette closed her eyes, trying to get her limbs to move. She was hallucinating now, and she felt tears roll down her face. "Who are you?" She panted, dread and pain twisting in her stomach.

  
"You may call me Tikki. You have finally broken free of the confines Hawkmoth put you in, but I can not help you other than this-" Marinette gasped as she felt her magic refill, stars chasing away her pain. "-remember the words, child."

  
"What words?" She could see again, but the creature-- Tikki-- was still just a glow that left black spots in her vision.

  
"You will remember when you need it. Escape, run. You do not have much time to idle."

  
With that, Tikki was gone, leaving Marinette in a too dark room. She lay breathing for a moment, before slowly getting out of bed once again that day. Her heart was pounding and her stomach was still twisting, but for different reasons now. She was able to escape.

  
Marinette stumbled down the stairs, her feet feeling like lead, but forced herself to gather a bag of food and an extra dress. Her fingers shook as she reached for the deep red cloak she had made, finality hitting her. Marinette forced herself to open the door she had never been able to before, a cool breeze going over her feet. She didn't have shoes, Marinette realized, but Tikki's words rang in her head. She didn't have time to idle

  
The first step made Marinette gasp, the sharp but not unpleasant feeling of the grass on her feet making her heart pound even harder. The second step was followed quickly by a third and fourth and a fifth and Marinette was running.

  
Marinette found herself looking around, the field huge and the yellow of the grain still bright in the moonlight. She was nearing the edge, and Marinette slowed as trees loomed over her, the thickness of them blocking the light and only leaving darkness.

  
Her heart was pounding and fear made her fingertips vibrate, but Marinette felt like she was soaring. She took a step into the darkness, pulling her cloak tight against her body.

 

  
She was _free_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was so fun to write, and I can't wait to post the next chapter!! I hope you enjoyed!!


	2. Wanderlust

The outside world hadn't lost its appeal to Marinette, though her feet were sore and the bottom of her dress was covered in dirt. Although every sound had made her jump at first, now that she had found a road she felt more confident. Marinette filled her lungs with air, the feeling bringing tears to her eyes. She was finally free, free to breathe fresh air, free to do what ever she wanted.

  
It didn't free her of hunger though, so Marinette sat on a rock, pulling out a hastily wrapped loaf of bread. She had a natural talent for baking, just as she did with magic.

  
After the bread was finished, Marinette started to walk again. The break had made her realize exactly how tired she was, and she struggled to keep her eyes open as the plodded along the dirt road. There had to be an inn somewhere, but even then Marinette had no money to buy a room. Though, if she explained the situation, maybe they would let her stay for the night if she worked?

  
Marinette paused, thinking about exactly how she would explain her situation to someone. 'Hello, I was kidnapped by someone and forced to do magic for ten years, but this glowing red ball named Tikki helped me escape and now I'm running away-- can I have a room?' Marinette chuckled to herself, shaking her head. No one would believe her, and even if they did, why would they risk the chances of getting tangled with magic?

  
Magic had always been an open topic in her village, almost everyone had some form of it, but since Marinette hadn't been to any other village, she wasn't sure if it was an appropriate thing to mention. Marinette stopped once again, horror filling her as her true situation dawned.

  
She didn't know where she was, if the people here spoke the same language, or if there even was people around to help her. As far as she knew, the tower that held her captive could be weeks away from any form of civilization. Marinette hadn't brought enough food to survive that long, and even if she did survive, where would she sleep? Or bathe? Who would take in a young girl who was covered in dirt and had been traveling for weeks?

  
Marinette's worries were soon put to rest when a figure stepped out from the darkness. She stopped, conflicting emotions filling her. On one had she was elated that she was close enough to civilization that there were bandits on the road and on the other, she was terrified because she was getting robbed.   
"Who are you?" Marinette took a step backwards, clutching her bag of supplies to her chest.

  
The man turned into two, and one laughed. "You don't need to know our name, girl. Just give us your belongings and we'll be on our way."

  
Marinette frowned, trying to stall as she came up with a plan. "I don't believe that is a fair trade? So I will have to decline your offer."

  
Her hand grasped a rather hard loaf of bread, and she got ready to throw it as one of the men stepped forward. He was huge, towering over her even though he was steps away, and his friend wasn't much shorter. "Listen, if you don't give us everything on you we will have to kill you. We don't want to do that, alri--"

  
Marinette launched the bread, hitting the talking man between the eyes. She surged forward, ducking below the arms of the second man with ease, her size helping her with her escape.

  
Her feet were numb as she ran, the pounding foot steps chasing behind her the only sound louder than her own heartbeat. If she kept running along this path, she should run into a village, or another person.

  
Quite literally.

  
Marinette yelped as she toppled into a hard figure, her full sprint taking them out with ease. The person was quick to react, though, and twisted her around so they were on top, and then to their feet. From her vantage point on the ground, Marinette could tell now that the person was a male with a lithesome figure. She struggled to catch her breath, scrambling to her feet.

  
The men who had been following her came to a stop, staring at the man who was blocking their path. Marinette took a step back, watching as the smaller male sauntered closer to the men.

  
"Haven't I talked to you two before? Or was that the other mindless giants that roamed the forest looking for young flesh to eat?" His voice was sharp, but the youth that radiated from it shocked Marinette. The man couldn't be much older than her, but his words made her take a closer look at the two men who had tried to rob her.

  
Marinette had never heard of giants before, but if they were to exist, these men would be the prime example. They both growled, lumbering to either side of the man. "We'll kill you for that and rip the flesh from your bones, and give the girl an even slower death for your insulting words."

  
The man laughed, but Marinette felt herself panic. She should run, but her body was rooted in place. "Well, if you are so determined to get a taste of me, why don't you try?"

  
And then something even Marinette couldn't imagine happened. The young man reached a hand behind his back, a dark light forming, and pulled out a long silver baton. Marinette felt herself drawn to the dark light, and knew that it was magic that he was using. The giants roared, and then there was a flurry of movement as one jumped at the young man.

  
Marinette forced her feet to move themselves in the direction of the trees, hoping that maybe she could hide. There was a guilt at the idea of leaving the man to deal with the giants, but she knew that they would both die if she didn't get away. At least he was giving her a running start.

  
As she ran, she could hear the banter of the man as he fought with the giants fading. Marinette tripped over a high root, and landed with her arms sprawled out in front of her. She opened her eyes when the ground shook, eyes flying up to see another giant running at her, blood covering her face. Marinette pushed herself up, heart pounding as she ran back to the battle. The man's laughter was rebounding on the trees, directing her back to him.

  
Marinette was not on the ground anymore. She cried out as she was knocked roughly onto the path, pain flaring up her arms as she tried to catch herself. Blood was soaked into the pressed dirt, and Marinette's stomach went to her throat as she caught sight of the dead body of the giant.

  
"Looks like we have a royal here!" The female giant laughed, coming out from the shadows of the trees.

  
Marinette looked to the man, but he had a straight face on. The giant took another step to Marinette, forcing the girl to scramble back. "I'm not a royal!" Marinette said, voice trembling slightly. The female giant laughed, a large hand slapping her thigh.

  
"I know a royal when I see one. No common folk would wear gold on their dress." Marinette looked down at her dress, one that she had made herself but she didn't know that it was gold thread she had been using for the details.

  
"It attracts giants, common logic." The man fighting the male giant grunted. Marinette watched with fascination as he twisted underneath the giants body, landing a hard it on his head and knocking him to his knees.

  
"Seems this little one doesn't know about that," The female giant leaned to Marinette, showing off her sharp, bloody teeth. "but stupidity doesn't change the taste."

  
Marinette had little warning as the giant reached for her, but she threw herself to the side. Tikki's words resounded in her head, and Marinette threw her hand up, putting all she could as she cast the spell. "Dextera amuletum!"

  
The red light was blinding, but Marinette couldn't look away as a ball formed in her hand. The giant's scream of pain filled the air, and a heavy object landed in Marinette's open palm. She brought it closer to her, trying to blink away the black spots in her vision.

  
It was a black ball with a thick cord of rope attached to one side. Marinette turned it over in her hands, not sure how to use it.

  
"Pull the string!" The sharp voiced man yelled, dodging a swing with a grin on his face. "Pull the string and throw it!"

  
Marinette grabbed the rope and yanked it hard. The ball started to vibrate in her hands, and Marinette shoved it away from her. Suddenly, the ball exploded into a thick mist, causing the giants to yell in what sounded like frustration.

  
Coughing, Marinette stood. Her body was aching and there was blood dripping down her face, but she didn't notice it. Her magic was draining too fast, and she could feel herself growing tired. She started to stumble forward, hoping that she would be able to escape, when a hand grabbed her shoulder. "Wrong way, princess." The man whispered in her ear, picking her up with ease.

  
Marinette didn't struggle against him, fighting with herself to keep her eyes open. His foot falls were quick but light, and she clutched at the black fabric he was wearing. "Who are you?" Marinette mumbled, wanting to know who was taking her. He couldn't have been evil, for he had saved her from the giants, but his use of magic had her concerned. There was a something off about it that she couldn't place, something that felt dangerous and told her to run.   
"Chat Noir." He said, breath coming out evenly despite his fast pace.

  
"Are you human?" Marinette could feel herself fading, but she wanted to know. She forced her eyes open, looking at the man in the better light. He was wearing a mask, but his green eyes glowed in the moonlight.

  
He grinned, revealing mostly human teeth. "Not quite." Marinette nodded, satisfied by that answer. At least he was being honest with her.

  
"I am." Marinette let her eyes close. She paused, thinking on what she had meant to say. "Human, that is."

  
"A royal?" Chat prompted. Marinette shook her head, just barely hanging on the edge of consciousness. His arms tightened around her, and Marinette sighed.

  
She would ask what why they thought she was royalty when she awoke.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, but I have the next chapter about half way done and should be posting shortly!! :)


	3. Secrets

Closing the rotting wood door of the abandoned shack he had been living out of for the past few days, Chat fought a sigh. He looked at the small girl still asleep on the floor-- he didn't trust the green tint of the bed-- wonder how he was going to deal with this. Taking in strays was only going to hold him back, especially one that had been wandering in the woods barefoot dressed heavily in gold... but the magic that was boiling under her skin was hard to ignore.   
Chat walked the ten steps to her, kneeling down next to her side. The girl's shoulders moved up and down with her soft breaths, her dark hair falling over her face like a curtain. He was careful to not cut her with his sharp claws as he pushed it back, examining the girls face. Although it had blood smeared on it, he could see faint freckles underneath the rust color. She was extremely pale, from her lack of magic or something else-- Chat couldn't tell.

  
The girl shifted and Chat quickly removed his hand, going to stand so it didn't seem like he had been hovering. He watched as she groaned, her arms forcing themselves to move and push her upwards. Half way up she froze, blue eyes shooting open. Chat chuckled as her face went through several emotions rapidly.   
His chuckle alerted her of his presence, and she quickly stood. "You kidnapped me!" The girl shouted, cheeks flushing as her eyes locked onto his. The intensity of her stare froze him to the spot, and he gave her a confused look.

  
"I saved you from giants that wanted to eat you, princess. Usually that isn't called kidnapping." Her cheeks flushed a dark hue, and Chat's heart skipped a beat. The girl was beautiful, even though she was a magic bomb waiting to go off.

  
"It is when you drag me somewhere--"

  
"I carried you, actually--"

  
Her blue eyes narrowed a him and she pointed a slim finger at his chest. "--drag me somewhere while I'm not awake. Where are we, Mr. Noir?"

  
Chat winced at the name. "Please, princess, call me Chat-- and we're in some hunting shack. Giants won't come this way, so we should be safe from them."

  
The girl frowned when he mentioned the giants, but she slowly deflated, hands hanging limply at her side. "Are they all dead?"

  
"Yes--" Chat stopped himself when her face fell, rephrasing his next words. "--well not exactly. I believe only one is dead."

  
She nodded, shifting on her feet. Chat moved to lean against the wall, sliding down to the ground. He wanted to make her relax some, but she stayed standing. "So whats your story?" He asked, resting his arm on his raised knee.

  
The girl looked at him cautiously, lips pursing. "I'm not sure if I should tell you..."

  
Shrugging, Chat looked up at the rotting roof. "Why were you in the woods at night wearing gold, then?"

  
"I don't think I should tell you that either..." Her voice was hesitant, and he sighed. She wasn't going to open to him at all.

  
Chat stood in a swift motion, stepping closer to her. She jumped, moving to step back before she stopped herself. "Can I at least know your name?"

  
Her eyes were a burning blue flame. The magic rolling off of her was enticing, and Chat hoped that she wouldn't respond with the same answer. "Marinette."

  
"Marinette," He repeated, rolling the same off of his tongue. He studied her, a thought coming to his mind. "where are you going?"

  
Marinette looked to the left, worry making her face scrunch. "Home," She said. Chat stepped back, feeling her magic suddenly increase. Her eyes snapped to his, and he felt himself quiver. "I'm going home."

  
"And where is home?" He asked, surprised he was able to keep his voice even. Her magic cut off as suddenly as it had started, and he let out a shaky breath. Marinette had her hands pressed to her face, eyes widening with panic.

  
"I forgot!" He blinked at her.

  
"You forgot where you lived?" She covered her eyes, groaning behind her hands.

  
"Its been forever since I've been there--"

  
"How long?" Her magic was building up again, and Chat tried to even his breathing. Even being near her was smothering.

  
"Ten years? Give or takes some days-- wait!" Her hands went flying off her face, and she grinned at him.  "You can help me find my home!"

  
Chat blanched. "No offence, princess, but if you don't remember where you live, I doubt I would know."

  
"I remember a tower, huge and black. It was made out of a twisting metal, and I think that it did something with magic. I can't remember though."

  
He studied her, frowning. Marinette did look like a noble in her gold embroidered dress, but if her dates were correct-- she was born before the move to Paris. Chat shook his head, then stopped as he though about her proposition. An idea started to form in his head and a smirk stretched onto his face, causing Marinette to give him a rather peculiar look.

  
"How about this," he started, crossing his arms. "if I bring you to the city you remember then you will enlighten me on your magic."

  
Marinette blinked slowly at him, her lips pouting slightly as she thought. Chat watched the lie form on her face-- her eyebrows furrowed slightly and a slight pink hue was dusting her cheeks-- and internally patted himself on his back. It was exactly what he expected her to do. "A-alright, but how do we get there?"

  
Chat waved his hand by his head, circling around to the door. "It will take a few days, but I have a connection in a nearby town that will help. For now, we need to get you ready to travel."

.  
.  
.  
.

  
Marinette huffed as she rubbed the blood off of her skin, glaring over at her new companion as he packed. Now that she wasn't running from giants she saw how annoying the boy-- he was her age, she learned after pestering him-- could be.

  
Of course Chat had noticed her magic, which was something Marinette couldn't evaluate on her own, and his constant sly questions about it had her at wits end. She didn't want to tell him that she had been kidnapped at a young age and forced to work magic for a strange person in a tower up until recently, but for all of her creativity she couldn't think of a story that actually made sense.

  
The threat of whom ever had kidnapped her finding out, for certainly they had noticed by now that she wasn't doing her work, made her hair rise. Tikki had told her to run, to remember the words and she had-- but now that she was out in the world she was hopelessly lost. Her magic wasn't reliable and Marinette hadn't thought of how she would even survive. Chat Noir was her savior, and Marinette acknowledged begrudgingly that without him she would be dead.   
Hot anger filled her and Marinette scrubbed at her arm vigorously. She hated this feeling of helplessness, hated not being able to do something, hated that she had to blindly follow the path which--

  
A black gloved hand waved in front of her face, and Marinette jerked back on reflex, letting out a small yelp as she fell off the rock she had been perched upon. The devil himself stared down at her, smirking. Oh how Marinette hated his smirk.

  
"Princess, we should be leaving soon." Marinette glared at him, pushing herself to her feet.

  
She didn't like standing next to him because she had to crane her neck just to see his stupid face. Marinette took a few steps away, dusting her already ruined dress off. "Shouldn't we wait? The sun will be setting soon."

  
Chat followed her, hands behind his back. "I can see in the dark. Its paw-ty useful."

  
Marinette stopped, staring at his glowing green eyes with horror written on her face. Had he really just said that? Shaking her head, Marinette turned to face him fully. "That wasn't okay, Chat."

  
"Not okay?" His smirk widened into a grin, showing off his sharp canines. "As a matter of cat, Princess, its purr-fect."

  
He blinked at her, as if she had blown in his face, and Marinette stuck her tongue out before she turned on her heel, walking to the road where she had left her bag. "You're so weird." She muttered under her breath.

  
Chat followed behind her, blabbering on about some nonsense that Marinette didn't have the attention span to listen to. Her thoughts strayed to her home, wondering what her parents would be doing right now. She remembers the sweet smell of bread as it cooked, getting burned on the hot stove.

  
Marinette looked at her hand, tilting it so she could see the faint scar that was left. Her heart ached with homesickness, mourning all that she had ripped away from her.

  
"Princess, you're drawing attention to us." Chat sounded strained. Marinette focused in on what they were doing, just now noticing that they didn't have the light of the sun under the thick branches of the forest.

  
"How?" Marinette asked, looking over to the black clad boy. He had his head cocked to the side, as if he would be able to hear better out of the black cat ears on his head--though Marinette was positive they were fake.

  
"Your magic," His hands were taut at his side, and he stepped forward. "you let off so much of it."

  
"I let off magic?" Marinette asked, looking around the edges of the path. She couldn't see anything except for black. Anxiety filled her, and she pulled her bag closer to her chest.

  
Chat let out a small whistle. "Like now-- it must be connected to your emotions or something along the lines. Did you not learn how to control that?"  
"No." Marinette glowered at him. Chat raised an eyebrow, disbelief plain on his face.

  
"Its the first thing that they teach when you have magic." He stated, his eyes darting around. Marinette felt the hair on the back of her neck rise, but forced herself to be still. She wouldn't show she was afraid.

  
"I didn't learn magic." A partial truth. Marinette hadn't learned magic in a classroom, but rather learned to repeat words and see how they effected her. Even the words Tikki had told her weren't hers.

  
There was a slight rumbling sound. Marinette turned around quickly, heart pounding as it grew louder. Chat seemed transfixed, his green eyes blown wide as he listened. The sound was replaced by a bells ringing in the distance, and Marinette was frozen as it all faded away.

  
"Princess," Chat breathed. Marinette turned to face him, a question on her lips. "who are you?"

  
"What was that?" Marinette ignored his question, clutching her bag even closer to her. The bread inside crushed by her tight grip.

  
Chat shook his head, raising a hand to run it through his hair. Tension made his motions tight. "It was a threat."

  
Marinette felt the blood drain from her face, Tikki's reminder ringing in her head. She hadn't even been gone for a day. The boy before her let his arm fall, his piercing gaze making her stomach flop.

  
"A threat?" Marinette managed to squeeze out.

  
"That was calling for you, Marinette. Someone is looking for you."

  
Her heart ached. She was going to be caught and forced back into her tower unless she was able to hide herself away, which was impossible since she didn't even know where she was. Chat had offered to take her to Paris in exchange to know her magic but he had to have known what her magic was, he didn't know anything about--

  
Marinette looked at him, hope filling her. "Could we add another segment to our deal, Chat Noir?"

  
He blinked, then narrowed his eyes. "Another deal? You do know I run on secrets, Ms. Marinette. What do you have to offer?"

  
Taking a deep breath, Marinette let her bag drop from her grip and clenched her fists at her sides. This was either very stupid or something that could save her life.

  
"Me-- I can offer myself."

  
Chat Noir grinned, matching her step forward so they were toe to toe. "Thats more than enough."

  
Maybe it was both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND WE GET INTO THE PLOT
> 
> This chapter was originally going to be split, but Chat's part was a bit short. He is definetly harder to write then Marinette, but practice makes perfect!!
> 
> The next chapter will introduce new characters (bonus if you can guess who) plus some quality bonding :)


End file.
